Diet (assembly)
Encyclopedia
In politics
, a diet is a formal deliberative assembly
. The term is mainly used historically for the Imperial Diet, the general assembly of the Imperial Estates
of the Holy Roman Empire
, and for the legislative bodies of certain countries.
dieta, meaning both "parliamentary assembly" and "daily food allowance", from earlier Latin
diaeta transcribing Classical Greek diaita, meaning "way of living", and hence also "diet", "regular (daily) work". Through a false etymology
, reflected in the spelling change replacing ae by e, the word came to be associated with Latin dies, "day". The word came to be used in the sense of "an assembly" because of its use for the work of an assembly meeting on a daily basis, and hence for the assembly itself. The association with dies is reflected in the German language
use of Tagung (meeting) and -tag (not only meaning "day", as in Montag—i.e. Monday—but also "parliament", "council", or other law-deliberating chamber, as in Bundestag
or Reichstag).
:
Since the Second Peace of Thorn of 1466, a German language Prussian diet Landtag
was held in the lands of Royal Prussia
, a province of Poland in personal union
with the King of Poland.
The Croatian word for a legislative assembly is sabor (from the verb sabrati se, "to assemble"); in historic contexts it is often translated with "diet" in English, as in "the Diet of Dalmatia" (Dalmatinski sabor), "the Croatian Diet" (Hrvatski sabor), or "the Hungarian-Croatian Diet" (Ugarsko-hrvatski sabor).
The Hungarian Diet, customarily called together every three years in Pozsony
, were also called "Diéta" in the Habsburg Empire
before the 1848 revolution.
The Riksdag of the Estates
was the diet of the four estates of Sweden
, from the 15th century until 1866. The Diet of Finland
was the successor to the Riksdag of the Estates in the Grand Duchy of Finland
, from 1809 to 1906.
The Swiss Diet was known as Tagsatzung
.
Until 1953, the Danish
parliament was called the Rigsdag
and had two chambers.
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
, a diet is a formal deliberative assembly
Deliberative assembly
A deliberative assembly is an organization comprising members who use parliamentary procedure to make decisions. In a speech to the electorate at Bristol in 1774, Edmund Burke described the English Parliament as a "deliberative assembly," and the expression became the basic term for a body of...
. The term is mainly used historically for the Imperial Diet, the general assembly of the Imperial Estates
Imperial State
An Imperial State or Imperial Estate was an entity in the Holy Roman Empire with a vote in the Imperial Diet assemblies. Several territories of the Empire were not represented, while some officials were non-voting members; neither qualified as Imperial States.Rulers of Imperial States were...
of the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
, and for the legislative bodies of certain countries.
Etymology
The term (also in the nutritional sense) is derived from Medieval LatinMedieval Latin
Medieval Latin was the form of Latin used in the Middle Ages, primarily as a medium of scholarly exchange and as the liturgical language of the medieval Roman Catholic Church, but also as a language of science, literature, law, and administration. Despite the clerical origin of many of its authors,...
dieta, meaning both "parliamentary assembly" and "daily food allowance", from earlier Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
diaeta transcribing Classical Greek diaita, meaning "way of living", and hence also "diet", "regular (daily) work". Through a false etymology
False etymology
Folk etymology is change in a word or phrase over time resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a more familiar one. Unanalyzable borrowings from foreign languages, like asparagus, or old compounds such as samblind which have lost their iconic motivation are...
, reflected in the spelling change replacing ae by e, the word came to be associated with Latin dies, "day". The word came to be used in the sense of "an assembly" because of its use for the work of an assembly meeting on a daily basis, and hence for the assembly itself. The association with dies is reflected in the German language
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
use of Tagung (meeting) and -tag (not only meaning "day", as in Montag—i.e. Monday—but also "parliament", "council", or other law-deliberating chamber, as in Bundestag
Bundestag
The Bundestag is a federal legislative body in Germany. In practice Germany is governed by a bicameral legislature, of which the Bundestag serves as the lower house and the Bundesrat the upper house. The Bundestag is established by the German Basic Law of 1949, as the successor to the earlier...
or Reichstag).
Historic uses
In this sense, it commonly refers to the Imperial Diet assemblies of the Holy Roman EmpireHoly Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
:
- Imperial Diet
- Diet of AugsburgDiet of AugsburgThe Diet of Augsburg were the meetings of the Imperial Diet of the Holy Roman Empire in the German city of Augsburg. There were many such sessions, but the three meetings during the Reformation and the ensuing religious wars between the Roman Catholic emperor Charles V and the Protestant...
- Diet of NurembergDiet of NurembergThe Diet of Nuremberg is often called the Imperial Diet at Nuremberg.There were several of them because, according to the Golden Bull of 1356, each Holy Roman Emperor had to hold his first diet in Nuremberg after his election...
- Diet of Regensburg
- Diet of SpeyerDiet of SpeyerDiet of Speyer or Diet of Spires refers to any of the sessions of the Imperial Diet of the Holy Roman Empire, of which 50 took place between 838 and 1570 in the city of Speyer , now in Germany...
- Diet of WormsDiet of WormsThe Diet of Worms 1521 was a diet that took place in Worms, Germany, and is most memorable for the Edict of Worms , which addressed Martin Luther and the effects of the Protestant Reformation.It was conducted from 28 January to 25 May 1521, with Emperor Charles V presiding.Other Imperial diets at...
Since the Second Peace of Thorn of 1466, a German language Prussian diet Landtag
Landtag
A Landtag is a representative assembly or parliament in German-speaking countries with some legislative authority.- Name :...
was held in the lands of Royal Prussia
Royal Prussia
Royal Prussia was a Region of the Kingdom of Poland and of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth . Polish Prussia included Pomerelia, Chełmno Land , Malbork Voivodeship , Gdańsk , Toruń , and Elbląg . It is distinguished from Ducal Prussia...
, a province of Poland in personal union
Personal union
A personal union is the combination by which two or more different states have the same monarch while their boundaries, their laws and their interests remain distinct. It should not be confused with a federation which is internationally considered a single state...
with the King of Poland.
The Croatian word for a legislative assembly is sabor (from the verb sabrati se, "to assemble"); in historic contexts it is often translated with "diet" in English, as in "the Diet of Dalmatia" (Dalmatinski sabor), "the Croatian Diet" (Hrvatski sabor), or "the Hungarian-Croatian Diet" (Ugarsko-hrvatski sabor).
The Hungarian Diet, customarily called together every three years in Pozsony
Bratislava
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...
, were also called "Diéta" in the Habsburg Empire
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...
before the 1848 revolution.
The Riksdag of the Estates
Riksdag of the Estates
The Riksdag of the Estates , was the name used for the Estates of the Swedish realm when they were assembled. Until its dissolution in 1866, the institution was the highest authority in Sweden next to the King...
was the diet of the four estates of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, from the 15th century until 1866. The Diet of Finland
Diet of Finland
The Diet of Finland , was the legislative assembly of the Grand Duchy of Finland from 1809 to 1906 and the recipient of the powers of the Swedish Riksdag of the Estates....
was the successor to the Riksdag of the Estates in the Grand Duchy of Finland
Grand Duchy of Finland
The Grand Duchy of Finland was the predecessor state of modern Finland. It existed 1809–1917 as part of the Russian Empire and was ruled by the Russian czar as Grand Prince.- History :...
, from 1809 to 1906.
The Swiss Diet was known as Tagsatzung
Tagsatzung
The Swiss Tagsatzung was the legislative and executive council of the Swiss confederacy from the beginnings until the formation of the Swiss federal state in 1848. It was a meeting of delegates of the individual cantons...
.
Until 1953, the Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
parliament was called the Rigsdag
Rigsdag
Rigsdagen was the name of the Parliament of Denmark from 1849 to 1953.Rigsdagen was Denmark's first parliament, and it was incorporated in the Constitution of 1849. It was a bicameral legislature, consisting of two houses, the Folketing and the Landsting. The distinction between the two houses was...
and had two chambers.
Current use
- The modern GermanGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
parliament, called the BundestagBundestagThe Bundestag is a federal legislative body in Germany. In practice Germany is governed by a bicameral legislature, of which the Bundestag serves as the lower house and the Bundesrat the upper house. The Bundestag is established by the German Basic Law of 1949, as the successor to the earlier...
(federal diet); the derivation is that "-tag" (in that form, only used as a second part of a compositum) in GermanGerman languageGerman is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
means "assembly", indicating the Latin-derived meaning. The term is rarely if ever translated into EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
in English-language texts, even on first reference. - The parliaments of the German federated states (Länder) are mostly named LandtagLandtagA Landtag is a representative assembly or parliament in German-speaking countries with some legislative authority.- Name :...
, literally means "State Diet". - The name of the SwedishSwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
parliament is the RiksdagParliament of SwedenThe Riksdag is the national legislative assembly of Sweden. The riksdag is a unicameral assembly with 349 members , who are elected on a proportional basis to serve fixed terms of four years...
, which, being cognateCognateIn linguistics, cognates are words that have a common etymological origin. This learned term derives from the Latin cognatus . Cognates within the same language are called doublets. Strictly speaking, loanwords from another language are usually not meant by the term, e.g...
to German Reichstag, literally means "Diet of the Realm". - The Japanese ParliamentDiet of JapanThe is Japan's bicameral legislature. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives, and an upper house, called the House of Councillors. Both houses of the Diet are directly elected under a parallel voting system. In addition to passing laws, the Diet is formally...
(the Kokkai) is conventionally called the Diet in English, indicating the heavy PrussianKingdom of PrussiaThe Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
influence on the Meiji ConstitutionMeiji ConstitutionThe ', known informally as the ', was the organic law of the Japanese empire, in force from November 29, 1890 until May 2, 1947.-Outline:...
, Japan's first modern written constitution. - Some universities refer to the period of formal examination and the conclusion of an academic term as an "examination diet".
See also
- Federal AssemblyBundesversammlung (German Confederation)The Federal Assembly was the only central institution of the German Confederation from 1815 until 1848, and from 1850 until 1866. The Federal Assembly had its seat in the palais Thurn und Taxis in Frankfurt...
- LandtagLandtagA Landtag is a representative assembly or parliament in German-speaking countries with some legislative authority.- Name :...
- The StatesThe StatesThe States or the Estates signifies the assembly of the representatives of the estates of the realm, called together for purposes of legislation or deliberation...
- Thing (assembly)Thing (assembly)A thing was the governing assembly in Germanic and introduced into some Celtic societies, made up of the free people of the community and presided by lawspeakers, meeting in a place called a thingstead...
- Reichstag (disambiguation)